Downton Fall Risk Index
Downton Fall Risk Index (Downton 1993): one point each for known previous falls.
Open the calculator → Runs in your browser. Data leaves only if you deliberately send a problem report from the interactive tool.
Example
- Known previous falls
- Yes
- Diuretics
- Yes
- Antihypertensives
- Yes
- Visual impairment
- Yes
- Mental state
- Confused / cognitively impaired
- Gait
- Unsafe (with or without aids)
Result: Downton 6 of 11 — high fall risk (>= 3).
The tool opens with these values already filled in. Replace them with your own.
What the result means
- >= 3
- High fall risk; institute fall-prevention measures. A screening aid, not a prediction of any individual fall.
- Quirks
- Other medications score 0, and an "unable to walk" gait scores 0 while an unsafe gait scores 1.
What you enter
- Known previous falls
- Tranquillizers or sedatives
- Diuretics
- Antihypertensives (other than diuretics)
- Antiparkinson drugs
- Antidepressants
- Visual impairment
- Hearing impairment
The other 3 fields
- Limb deficit (amputation, neuropathy)
- Mental state
- Gait
How this is calculated
- Points
- previous falls (1); each of 5 medication classes (up to 5); each of 3 sensory deficits (up to 3); confused (1); unsafe gait (1) = 0-11.
Downton JH. Falls in the Elderly. London: Edward Arnold; 1993. Cut-point per Rosendahl E, Lundin-Olsson L, Kallin K, et al. Prediction of falls among older people in residential care facilities by the Downton index. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2003;15(2):142-147. Read the source ↗
A reference and educational tool. Not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a substitute for clinician judgment.